Today’s coping tip is to listen wholeheartedly to someone else, without judging them.
I get the chance to talk with lots of people. I make it a point when I go to events or travel to get time with friends, or make time for people that come up to me and introduce themselves, and give them some undivided attention.
Sometimes these conversations go sideways, but most of the time people are very interesting in how they view the world. This tip made me think of the PASS Data Community Summit and an individual I met there. I was glad that I stopped and spent 10 minutes chatting with them.
After a session, someone came up to me and wanted to talk about DevOps and culture. This was a person who had studied psychology and culture in organizations and was now working with DevOps. They wanted to explain to me how they viewed the process, and where I was right, and where I was deficient.
I didn’t always agree with their conclusions, but I didn’t judge them. Their view and experiences were not mine, and perhaps they were right. In any case, I was happy to listen to their view and help broaden my perspective on something that is a regular part of my job.
I started to add a daily coping tip to the SQL Server Central newsletter and to the Community Circle, which is helping me deal with the issues in the world. I’m adding my responses for each day here. All my coping tips are under this tag.